Chapter 5b: Not as fun to Pick Up the Pieces

AN: Wow. On a roll…Now here's some more Angst!

"Okay." Nabiki muttered. "So why do you want books about legends, Kasumi?"

"Ranma. Something Tofu said reminded me of an old folklore I heard." Kasumi bruised herself with two old books. "I mean to be able to walk around a bit after a few weeks of rest after knocking himself out is a little odd."

"Well, with Ranma, he does the impossible. He killed a god. He had a curse. He was super powerful if not too bright."

"No, Ranma was quite intelligent." Kasumi corrected. "He found it useless to think most things through. Hm."

Kasumi flipped through the books. Nabiki frown quietly as she thought about it. Kasumi made a small noise of triumph before paling. She stood up suddenly and rushed over the counter. Nabiki put the other one on the cart when she realized Kasumi was leaving with the book.

"What's wrong, Kasumi?" Nabiki caught up to her now pissed sibling.

"I'm going to fry some shrine assistant's butt." She muttered back. "T he bastard knew. He had to."

Nabiki was impressed by the tree within the Sunset Shrine. Well, she had heard many a strange tale about this place, but still it was a nice little shrine.

Kasumi knocked on the door. An very old man came out.

"Sorry, my daughter is not feeling well. Broken arm and the flu, you know."

Nabiki watched in a morbid fascination as Kasumi seemed to revert to that happy housekeeper façade.

'Scary.' Nabiki thought.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Actually, I'm here to see Mr. Sesshoumaru. Is he here?" She said cheerily.

The old man eyed her warily for a moment before nodding and disappearing into the house. Then a literal Adonis of a man walked out and closed the door behind him.

She may loved Kuno-baby but didn't mean she couldn't ogle. A nice body. Beautiful platinum blond hair. Amber eyes. But cold. Brr.

Kasumi seemed unaffected as she promptly grabbed him by the ear and dragged him off the porch to a shed. The man, Mr. Sesshoumaru, was too surprised to do anything but let her. That and the look on Kasumi's face could kill at the range. Nabiki followed a few steps behind.

"You knew." She yelled at the man and threw the book at him.

Nabiki wondered if the man knew he was cringing a bit. "This Sesshoumaru suspected."

"Why could you tell us? Everything would have made more sense!" Kasumi yelled.

"Something stop me." He said quietly, re-gathering his composure.

Kasumi seemed to deflated. She collapsed on the wooden floor. She buried her face in her hands.

"I…we…why must it be so?"

Sesshoumaru watched on sadly. Nabiki felt extreme confusion. What the hell is going on?

"The future is not written in stone, Ms. Tendo." Sesshoumaru helped her off the ground. "But I will warn you, appraise the time you do get to spend with him for one day he might not be able to return to you."

Nabiki watched the grief in the man's eyes and wondered distantly what had happened to make him so emotionless.

"Ms. Nabiki Tendo. Yes, I know of you." Sesshoumaru spoke. "Lead your sister home. She needs time to accept it."

She turn once last time to look back at the tall man in the dimness of the shed. The man held a small kimono in his hands and his golden eyes glimmered.